Spinning Circles

Chapter 7

Rigs had been stuck in the hospital for two days and he was already going insane as far as he could tell. The broken ribs, numerous cuts and abrasions plus the concussion had made the doctors decide to keep him under observation for as long as they could make him. He was the first to admit he was a hellish patient with his whining and cussing and general ornery-ness. It had been two whole days and many people had dropped by – Street, the team, his brother and the Coach. It had been an interesting conversation dominated by long periods of silence.

"So these guys just ambushed you?" the Coach asked askance.

"Yeah they were pretty pissed about the whole losing thing and I guess they decided I would be a fun target. Julie just happened to be there," it wasn't the truth, he was positive that Julie's presence had a lot to do with it but he didn't want the Coach to get any more steamed than he already was.

"So it was five onto one?" a clear question to which Rigs had to laugh.

"Uh sir, it was more like five onto two, Julie's gave as good as she got," and she had. The Coach looked displeased at the idea of his daughter fighting but a little chuffed that she had stood up for herself. "She was amazing Coach, when I was on the ground and getting pummelled she jumped on this guys back and nearly tore the hair right out of his skull. She has a pretty good right too." Coach grinned a little at the last comment and then sobered up immediately.

"Look uh Tim..." the Coach began tugging his hand through his hair, his forehead pinched in contemplation.



"Just wait Coach, there is something I want to say. I am really sorry that I wasn't able to protect your daughter. You placed her in my care and I let you down sir," the Coach looked a little startled.

"Oh Riggins, that is not necessary young man," the Coach began. "You were vastly outnumbered by all accounts and from what I heard, you did everything you could to protect my daughter. I am very appreciative, God knows what they had planned. Mrs Taylor and I are very grateful to you." His solemn tone broke as he added, "now hurry up and heal so you can drag your sorry ass to practice." Rigs had to smile at that, even though it stretched some bruised areas of his face including the stiches that ran from his bottom lip towards his chin. It may be only six stitches but they hurt like the devil.

"Um sir?" Rigs found himself asking a question he would never have ever considered asking prior. "Is Julie okay?"

"She's got a bit of bruising and some swelling. She was pretty lucky." He would have sighed had a deeper breath not pained him. The same information he had received from every one he had asked. So many people had been in his hospital room and yet she hadn't.

Rigs had thought a lot about why she would not come and see him and he was coming up with nothing. He had had too much time to think and all he was thinking was about Julie. He knew now, he knew with certainty that he actually felt something for her. She wasn't just a quick lay. When he'd been lying on the cold asphalt he had been more worried for her than himself. He was officially screwing himself over instead of her! What the hell was he supposed to do now, he liked her? He actually wanted to converse with her as well as kiss the stuffing out of her. This was not good. If he could have anything he could have in the world in this moment, it would be for her to be in his room telling him that she was okay face to face. He was becoming mushy, he hated mushy with all of his being. There had to be some way of de-mushifying himself.

Rigs heard a knock on the door and before he had a moment to process who he saw she launched into a torrent of dialogue.



"So I've come by cause my Dad said that I should, that it would be the 'right thing to do'. Honestly like you give a rat's ass whether or not I come by."

She looked up finally and her eyes swept over his face in one quick look. She would have taken in the eye that was swollen shut, the stitches through his lip and the swelling and bruises that peppered his body. He took in her face, it wasn't nearly as bad as his own but it still packed a punch. Her lip had been split, from the slap he was guessing and there was a butterfly bandage crossing it. The left side of her face however was a different matter. Her whole cheek was mottled different shades of blue, purple and yellow with a puffiness that distorted her face. He felt rage rush through him, those guys did that to her, those guys did that while he was being a nancy boy on the surface of the car park. The guilt he felt was monumental, the weight was beyond compare and he suddenly had difficulty breathing through the pain of his many broken ribs.

There was a flicker of something in her eyes as she witnessed his pain, the pain he had been rewared with for poorly protecting her. She heaved something from her side onto the table thingy that went over the bed.

"Since you bought me a book that I enjoy, I thought I would return the favour," she pulled out a thin and rather large book from her paper bag. He was surprised she had brought him something, hell he was surprised she had come by no matter how brusque she was. She had touched a sensitive spot when she'd stated that she had come because her father had instructed her, she hadn't come for herself, because she wanted to and that mattered. He let that thought melt away and focused on the gift. The tiny bit of happiness that she had made the effort to get something for him disappeared in a second as he read the cover. Was this some kind of joke?

"Barney and friends colouring book," she announced and she slapped it in front of him. Atop it she dropped a pack of crayons "I thought you might hurt yourself with the pencil leads so crayons were the only real choice," she gleefully announced. He hadn't taken his eyes off of the present pile, refusing to give her any reaction for her pettiness. He could read, was she implying he couldn't read? Yeah she was. She'd even accused him of being so dumb he may injure himself with a freaking pencil for goodness sakes.



"Thank you," he calmly offered as he raised his head. She was shocked by his politeness, it was evident on her face, almost as clear as the billboards in Times Square. "But I don't take gifts from spoiled, ungrateful, frigid nerds who would prefer to be raped over saying thank you," his barb hit her and the gasp reverberated around the room. He had been harsh but he wasn't the one who had entered his room with an unclear agenda and something pointy up their ass.

Author's Note